Bechtler and Mint museums to participate in international Art Museum Day on Sunday, May 18

May 13, 2014

On Sunday, May 18, visitors can experience half-price adult admission and free admission for kids under 18 at two of Charlotte’s premier cultural destinations. The Bechtler Museum of Modern Art and The Mint Museum are celebrating the Association of Art Museum Directors’ (AAMD) Art Museum Day 2014 with admission deals and other special events.

To promote appreciation for art museums and invite increased public participation, the Bechtler and the Mint, neighbors on South Tryon Street at Levine Center for the Arts, are teaming up for their pricing special: Half-price adult admission (normally $10 at the Mint reduced to $5; normally $8 at the Bechtler reduced to $4), and everyone under age 18 is admitted free. In addition, the Mint is waiving all exhibition fees to see Women of Vision: National Geographic Photographers on Assignment (which is normally $10 in addition to regular admission for adult non-members). Both museums remain free to their members. This will be the first day since Women of Vision, a showcase of work by 11 globe-trotting female National Geographic photographers, opened on March 29 that special exhibition fees have been waived for non-members of the museum.

Since 2010, the AAMD has encouraged art museums across the nation to participate in conjunction with the International Council of Museums’ (ICOM) International Museum Day, dedicated to promoting the value of museums in society. Nearly 170 AAMD member museums participated last year.

This year’s event coincides with a Sunday Fun Day at Mint Museum Uptown, which fills the atrium with hands-on activities and interactive experiences one Sunday each month from 1-4 p.m. This Sunday’s activities include visiting artists from The Light Factory who will help participants explore photography hands-on; gallery tours of Women of Vision; a tin-type photography demonstration; opportunities to play with Polaroids and learn about digital pin-hole cameras; and family-friendly Let's Move and Groove Fitness Fun. More information is available at mintmuseum.org/happenings.

The special admission rates will also be offered at the Mint’s original Randolph Road location, 2730 Randolph Road on Sunday – general admission is always valid for both Mint Museum locations.

ABOUT THE BECHTLER MUSEUM OF MODERN ART

The Bechtler Museum of Modern Art is dedicated to the exhibition of mid-20th-century modern art. It is named after the family of Andreas Bechtler, who assembled and inherited a collection created by seminal figures in modernism. The museum is located at Levine Center for the Arts, 420 South Tryon Street, Charlotte. Operating hours are Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.; Sunday 12 p.m. - 5 p.m.; closed Tuesdays. Admission is $8 for adults; $6 for seniors, college students and educators; $4 for youth (11 to 14) and free for children (up to 10). For museum details visit www.bechtler.org.

ABOUT LEVINE CENTER FOR THE ARTS

Levine Center for the Arts is one of Charlotte’s key cultural destinations, comprised of Bechtler Museum of Modern Art, Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Arts + Culture, John S. and James L. Knight Theater, Mint Museum Uptown, and Duke Energy Center. The Levine Center was made possible through the Campaign for Cultural Facilities, the support of the City of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County, and the generosity of the Leon Levine Foundation, one of the country’s largest and most impactful philanthropic organizations.